MapMuse - Locate Italian Specialty Food Markets Near You

...a certain extent there is really no such thing as Italian cuisine in the way that one usually understands national cuisines. Each area has its own proud specialties, primarily at Regional level, but also even at Provincial level. Italian cuisine is not only highly regionalised, it is very seasonal. The high priority placed on the use of fresh, seasonal produce distinguishes the cuisine of Italy from the imitations available in most other countries.

Roman cuisine, for example, uses a lot of pecorino (sheep milk cheese) and offal (called frattaje in Rome), while Tuscan cooking features white beans, meat, and unsalted bread. Pizza also varies across the county, the crusts of pizzas in Rome are thin as crackers, while Neapolitan and Sicilian pizza is thicker. The influence of Northern Italian cuisine can be seen in French and German cuisines. Piemonte and Lombardia each grow their own different kind of rices, which are used to make risotto. The North of Italy is the home of polenta. Emilia-Romagna is known for lasagna and tortellini (stuffed pasta), mortadella, prosciutto, and parmigiano. Naples (Napoli) is the home of pizza, mozzarella and pastries (babà, sfogliatelle). Calabria's cuisine uses a lot of hot pepper for its distinctive salami (that are common, in several varieties, in about all the Country) and uses capsicum. Sicily is the home of gelato (ice cream) and granita but its cuisine also has many influences from Arab cuisine (lemon, pistachio) and also includes fish (tuna, swordfish). Sardinia is famous for lamb and pecorino. Every province (sub-division of a Region) has proper desserts and many other recipes.